Local Volunteers Promote Literacy at the Library

American-born Christine Langteau and Korean-born Grace Kim are two longtime California residents from different cultures who meet every week as tutor and student in the Literacy Program.

"The best way to learn is to meet with a person who speaks English as much as I can," said Kim.

Langteau, who also works in the Los Angeles Law Library in the Pomona courthouse, said part of her interest in the literacy program came from seeing her daughter’s challenges with learning how to read. That made her appreciate how difficult English can be for any learner, from native speakers to ESL students.

"Having seen that, I come at it from a different perspective," said Langteau.

Langteau and Kim have been working together for almost a year. When they began, they focused on working out of a Voyager series library workbook for three months.

"Actually, I noticed I picked up a lot of words I didn’t know before," said Kim.

Langteau said that while the Voyager series was helpful, some terms in the stories were not commonly used today. Kim said she felt she needed more that applied to her real life, so Langteau brought newspaper articles for them to go over together.

"She finds good material in the L.A. Times," said Kim.

"For some literacy learners it would be difficult but for Grace it’s much easier," Langteau said.

For her part, Langteau says that tutoring has made her notice "the multiple meanings and nuances of one word that an English-speaking person wouldn’t pick up."

Because English language learners can have a more formal way of speaking and writing, Langteau has also noticed "our casualness of the way we use language."

"And sometimes the casualness in speaking translates into writing," Langteau said.

"What was interesting in reading the article, the phrases that were used, a person learning English would not know. How do you explain it to someone? And you don’t realize that until you start helping someone understand it," Langteau said.

"I learned a lot of words. She explained slang to me," said Kim.

Some English words, like "lamp," "banana," "radio," and "television" are incorporated into normal everyday speech in Korea, Kim said.

In the senior adult day care where she works, Kim usually speaks Korean with her coworkers, but at times, she has helped them with English. For example, at election time, Kim read the propositions on the ballots and translated them for her coworkers. Reading the more formal writing was less challenging for Kim than reading the slang and idiom-soaked articles in the L.A. Times.

In addition to picking up nuances in written language, Kim is most focused on speaking and understanding through auditory means.

"When I try to talk to a person face to face it’s hard to understand," Kim said.

"Most Koreans, their reading level is okay, but their speaking and hearing is a problem," she added.

Because she is most challenged by hearing the accent and pronunciation, Kim recently taped a conversation between her husband and an English speaking American. Kim wrote it out by herself first, then worked with Langteau on rewriting it, reading it, and auditory comprehension.

"My husband said, "Wow, so different from what I understood!" she laughed.

When Kim works with the people in her husband’s ministry with the Global Harvest Center in Los Angeles, all of the parishioners are Korean, and they normally speak in their first language. Kim also wants to be able to speak more English on the job, but her main reason for wanting to improve her English is because she thinks it will benefit the ministry.

"I want to connect my church ministry through the language," she said.

"Mostly I use the Korean language at home. I don’t have a chance to use English, actually," said Kim.

When she is at home, Kim sometimes tries to make herself watch television in English, but then switches to the Korean channel. She also keeps a notebook of vocabulary words to incorporate into her speaking and writing.

Both of Kim’s children were born in the U.S., and she said she made them speak Korean to her as they grew up. She said they can still speak Korean, but are more fluent in English. When they speak to her quickly in English, sometimes she just guesses at what they are saying. Then she asks questions and they have to repeat themselves.

Sometimes their grasp of her Korean is as faulty as her grasp of their English. Once she told them she didn’t understand what they were saying to her because they were speaking too fast.

"Ditto!" was their response.

One very meaningful experience that Langteau and Kim shared was when Langteau helped Kim write a letter in English to her son for his birthday.

Kim said her children have often been very helpful in explaining new English words to her. But now, she doesn’t want to ask them to help with her English anymore. She feels motivated to learn more English on her own, so she can impress them with her language skills.

"The reality is that we are living in America. Wherever we go, we are required to speak English. Whether we go to the market or DMV, that’s the reality," said Kim.

She says the tutoring sessions with Langteau have helped improve her English on many levels.

"I feel confidence," Kim said. "Whenever I don’t know, I ask her. Sometimes I send text messages."

"Or e-mails," said Langteau.

"I’m really, really thankful for her. She’s so devoted," Kim said of Langteau. "She usually never says ‘no,’ when I ask for help. Even though she works and she’s a very busy mom and wife and church member."

"I’m very, very happy, because besides me, she’s helping my English!" Kim added.